Find your center… then fill it with beer

Trying something new can be tough. There seems to be a dozen different steps between hearing about something interesting and new and actually trying something interesting and new. Sometimes a person requires the support of friends and family (witnesses), other times it’s the presence of someone you’re attracted to (to impress someone). And when neither one of those is present, one can always fall back on liquid courage (alcohol).

Past Pints and Poses participants at Peace Tree Brewing Company (left to right): Peace Tree owner Megan McKay, Amy Zuck, Becki Nichols and Jody Koffman.

This weekend you won’t have to decide among the three, because Pints and Poses at Confluence Brewery offers all that and more. But what is Pints and Poses? Drunk models?

Pints and Poses started out more than three years ago as a monthly event for Michelle Wilson’s yoga studio. The class would take a trip to a local brewery for class, then savor a few extra elbow bends at the bar after the session.

“I’ve been a yoga practitioner for over a dozen years and have taught for six years,” said Michelle. “It’s pretty popular, and we have offered Pints and Poses at Peace Tree Brewing in Knoxville, as well as Metropolitan Brewing Company in Chicago.”

Michelle’s husband, Jay Wilson, is a passionate beer writer/brewer/drinker and often tags along for the stretching (and, beer drinking).

“Our Pints and Poses events are a great way to break the ice for folks that might be a little reluctant to try yoga,” said Jay. “Maybe walking into a yoga studio that first time is a touch out of someone’s comfort zone, but rolling into a brewery with the promise of beer and conversation afterward might be the nudge someone needs to give it a try. We’ve certainly found that to be the case.”

Pints and Poses is about overall wellness. Michelle is not only a certified yoga instructor but also a holistic health coach. She approaches yoga from an eclectic view. Rather than twisting the body into human-pretzel shapes and forceful practice, Michelle believes yoga is “a way to become more present, ease tension and feel more fully alive.”

“In my experience, yoga is an antidote to the busy pace of our modern culture,” Michelle said. “There is nothing like a few mindful breaths, or better yet — a full yoga class — to bring the body from a place of ‘fight or flight’ into ‘rest and digest’ mode where the body can repair and renew itself.”

For Michelle and Jay, the marriage of yoga and beer was the result of their mutual passions.

“Both the yoga and the craft beer niches lean toward quality over quantity, and we’ve found Pints and Poses to be a fun break from the norm,” said Jay. “I’m more pints than poses but have enjoyed every class I’ve attended over the last few years.” CV

David Rowley is an Iowa native with a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Iowa and a master’s in film journalism from the University of Glasgow in Scotland.